Edikan Adiakpan sentenced to 30 months in U.S. for email fraud

Edikan Adiakpan, a 35-year-old Nigerian national residing in Houston, has been sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for his role in a business email compromise scheme. Adiakpan pleaded guilty to illegally transmitting proceeds from fraud that targeted more than 10 victims between 2020 and 2022.

Prosecutors stated that Adiakpan used his company, Akama Lifestyle, which was advertised as a luxury car service, to facilitate the transfer of fraudulent funds in exchange for a percentage of the proceeds. One notable victim, a Mississippi-based utility trailer company, lost $927,080 to the scheme. Adiakpan was found to have handled $359,000 of those funds.

Following his prison term, Adiakpan will serve three years of supervised release. The investigation was a collaborative effort involving the FBI and the IRS Criminal Investigation division. Another Nigerian national, Ayobami Omoniyi, was previously sentenced to 32 months in prison for a similar role in the scheme.